Sony WF-XB700 Bring EXTRA BASS to everything you do (update)

The final headset from today's reveal, the WF-XB700, and no this is not an April Fool's joke. I do not think it is a coincidence that all 3 of these new headsets were unveiled after their FCC short term confidentiality was finished, so I guess we can expect the WF-SP800N in May, and the WH-1000XM4 in June.

Up on Amazon for those interested.

        

So after the initial FCC post, and then the Anatel reveal, the WF-XB700 is finally here. The design is not a surprise, but it does look like the materials look much more premium and less cheap than in the pre-production photos. The colour options will be black and blue, just like the rest of the EXTRA BASS models. And like I mentioned in the post last month, the top and bottom are a darker matte colour, where as the center is lighter and more shinny. While I like the colour options, I feel a red colour would have also been great.

Specifications are still not up on the site, but the online guide can be found here. Once Sony puts up the specs, I will update this post. Summarizing from the product page, the WF-XB700 has up to 9 hours of battery life (impressive), 18 hours with the charging case, IPX4 water protection rating,  SBC/AAC codec support, and a 10 min quick charge yielding 60 minutes of use. The case has no NFC. Pre-orders start this month and the price will be $129.99 USD / $179.99 CAD / 149 €. If anyone knows any local prices, please leave them in them in the comments.

                

As for controls, the right side button on the earbud controls music playback, Voice assistance, and can be set to hands-free calling for right-handed individuals. The left side button controls the volume and can be set for hands-free calling for left-handed individuals. Here is how it works:

Right side

• Play/Pause: Press the button once briefly.
• Skip to the beginning of the next track: Press the button twice quickly.
• Skip to the beginning of the previous track (or the current track during playback): Press the button 3 times quickly.

Left side

• Increase the volume: Press the button on the left unit once during music playback to increase the volume by 1 step.
• Decrease the volume: Press and hold the button on the left unit during music playback to decrease the volume continuously. Release the button at the desired volume level.

Left and right buttons for controls

It is interesting that there is no exploded view of the headphones on the product page. Both the WF-1000XM3 and WF-H800 have this, but it seems to be absent for the WF-XB700. I will update the post with any good FCC teardown photos once they become available. But the headset will use either the MT2811S or the Airoha AB153x, judging from this photo on the product page. This looks a lot like Airoha's MCsync.

I am really curious if the driver is larger than the standard WF one and if the battery has been increased, so excited for the FCC teardown once that is available. That is all for now, any updates will go up as soon as I get them.

Update: 

Driver size according to Engadget is 12mm, same report from CNN.

FCC teardown photos are now available, but again not the best of photos. The BT antenna can be seen in the first photo below. There is no photo of the drivers, so we will need to wait for a full teardown to see those.

Unfortunately the Bluetooth chip is not readable here, so hard to tell what it is. One thing is clear, the chip is not shinny like the MT2811S, so perhaps this is an Airoha chip? Who knows, once a full teardown occurs, we will know the answer.

The other side does not have much, there is a round object but I am not sure what it is, perhaps someone knows? Looking at the PCB, it seems we are missing the Q128FWY that is present in both the WF-1000XM3 and WF-H800. Likewise I do not see the Mediatek MT6388P (power management chip) here. Perhaps there is another PCB that is not pictured and both those missing parts could be on there?

Battery is up next, same one as in the WF-1000XM3 or WF-H800. Guess it does not matter whicch one is used, they are have the same capacity.

Here is the main PCB from the case. If anyone is able to ID any of the chips or anything interesting, post below in the comments.

The battery is identical to the one from the WF-H800.

Finally the inside of the case with the battery. There seems to be some extra space in the battery area, so I wonder if a larger battery could be fitted inside to increase the recharge amounts? No idea.

Specifications (from reference guide)

Power source:
     DC 3.7 V: Built-in lithium-ion rechargeable battery
     DC 5 V: When charged using USB
Operating temperature:
     0 °C to 40 °C
Rated power consumption:
     0.4 W (Headset),
     2 W (Charging case)
Usage hours:
     When connecting via the Bluetooth device
          Music playback time: Max. 9 hours
          Communication time: Max. 5 hours
          Standby time: Max. 200 hours
     Note: Usage hours may be shorter depending on the Codec and the conditions of use.
Charging time:
     Approx. 2.5 hours (Headset)
     (About 60 minutes of music playback is possible after 10 minutes charging.)
     Approx. 3 hours (Charging case)
     Note: Charging and usage hours may be different depending on the conditions of use.
Charging temperature:
     5 °C to 35 °C
Mass:
     Approx. 8 g × 2 (Headset)
     Approx. 46 g (Charging case)
Included items:
     Wireless Stereo Headset (1)
     USB Type-C® cable (USB-A to USB-C®) (approx. 20 cm) (1)
     Hybrid silicone rubber earbuds (SS (1 line) (2), S (2 lines) (2), M (3 lines) (attached to the unit
     at the factory) (2), L (4 lines) (2))
     Charging case (1)

Communication system:
     Bluetooth Specification version 5.0
Output:
     Bluetooth Specification Power Class 1
Maximum communication range:
     Line of sight approx. 10 m)
Frequency band:
     2.4 GHz band (2.4000 GHz - 2.4835 GHz)
Compatible Bluetooth profiles:
     A2DP / AVRCP / HFP / HSP
Supported Codec:
     SBC / AAC
Transmission range (A2DP):
     20 Hz - 20,000 Hz (Sampling frequency 44.1 kHz)

So is anyone thinking of buying these? They seem like a good value but who knows how the sound quality will be like.

Product video.